The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1887-02-24

company 10 permit any other company or
corporation to use cars carrying passengers,
mail, baggage or express matter over Its road
unless the heating apparatus thereof shall
conform to the requirements Of this section
II further find that the lighting of pas
senger cars on this division Of the Baltimore
s. Ohio railroad is dangerous in the extreme
to the lives Of passengers thereon, in case Of
accident wherein cars are smashed or over
turned, and that said lighting of said cars is
contrary to and in violation of Section 1858
of the revised statutes of Ohio, to-wit:
"'No passenger cars on any railroad shall
be lighted by naphtha or any Illuminating
oil fluid made in part from naphtha, or
wholly or in part from coal or petroleum, or
other substance or material which will ignite
at temperature of less than 300 degrees
Fahrenheit; and the commissioner Of rail-
roads and telegraphs, by himself or agent,
may, at any time, enter the cars running on
any railroad and take from any lamp therein
samples of the oil found there, for the pur-
pose Of testing the same, and if it prove of a
lower grade than is required by the pro-
visions Of this section, he shall bring suit
for the penalty provided in Section S353'
'That on account Of the unlawful and un-
safe manner in which the cars of limited ex-
press train No. 5, above mentioned, were
heated and lighted, the explosive oil from the
lamp and the coal and fire from the stoves
therein, were thrown and scattered through
the cars when they were jammed, crushed
and telescoped together, and Immediately ig-
nited, and passengers and cars were rapidly
consumed. That but for the unlawful and
unsafe manner in which these cars were
heated and lighted as aforesaid, they would
not have taken fire and burned, and the loss
of life would have been very light And I
do further find that the said William Fred
erick and others aforesaid, came to their
deaths aforesaid, through gross negligence
on the part of the officials and managers Of
this division Of the Baltimore & Ohio Rail
road company, at Garrett, Ind, in sending
out said engine No. 923, or allowing and per-
mitting the same to be sent out upon said
railroad, on the morning of January 8, 1887,
when they well knew that said engine was in
an unfit unserviceable and dangerous condi-
ton
"And through gross negligence on the part
of said conductor, L. F. Fletcher, as con-
ductor of said freight train No. 90, in failing
and neglecting to properly flag and signal
said express train, and in failing to fully pro-
tect his said train and limited express. And
through gross negligence on the part Of the
owners, officials and managers of the Balti-
more & Ohio Railroad company, in having
and using upon said limited express train, at
the time of said collision, inferior, Ineffective
and unsafe brakes. And through the gross
negligence, and in violation of the laws Of the
state Of Ohio on the part of the, owners, Of
acials and managers of the Baltimore & Ohio
Railroad in ucinor sol
tied express train, at the time of said COLI
sion, unlawful and dangerous heating appa-
ratuses, and not so constructed or protected
as to efHectually guard the passengers against
theidanger by fire in case of accident by col
lision. .it. r.v..,....
" And through gross negligence, and in vio-
lation of the laws of the state of Ohio on tho
part Of the owners, officials and managers Of
the Baltimore Il Ohio railroad company In
using the unlawful and unsafe means and
manner of lighting cars of the said limited
express train, and in not doing and having
said lighting free,from naphthal or any IL,
Eliminating oil fluid made in part from
naphtha, or wholly or in part from coal, or
petroleum, or other substance or material
which will ignite at temperature of less
than 300'degrees Fahrenheit.
ut would seem that such negligence as re-
suited in causing so great loss Of life-could
not be other than criminal, but inasmuch as
there are no crimes in Ohio except such as
are created by statute, and as there is no
statute constituting and making such negli-
gence crime, there is no law in Ohio where
by those guilty of such negligence can be
charged therefor with crime. This GER
ta My is glaring oversight in the law
making power, especially when we consider
the awful results arising from such negli-
gence, Of which this case is startling ex-
ample
"Railroad companies, under heavy and ex-
acting penalties, should be prohibited by law
from sending crippled and disabled engines
out upon the line of road, and from compell-
ling or permitting employees in charge Of q
train to be out upon duty upon the line Of
road for such an unreasonable length of time
that they are worn out and unfit to perform
their duties as was the case with the freight
men in this matter, and from heating and
lighting cars in such manner as to endanger
human life. F rrrF 49,.
'sThe persons in charge of trains, and
guilty OF such negligence as resulted in this
calamity, should, by law, be made criminally
liable therefor, because dreadful consequences
are attached to such negligence and, as the
law now is, there is nothing to stimulate
such employees to lively appreciation Of
their employment, or to make them realize
that serious consequences will attach to them
personally for such negligence, resulting in
the loss Of human life. 1t may be difficult to
say where the line should be drawn between
civil liability and criminal liability, but it
certainly can be drawn at some point, so that
the travelling public can have some kind of
guarantee against the reckless misconduct Of
employees in charge Of trains
GAS the law now is, railroad companies
employ and put in charge of trains whomso-
ever they please, and the only thing the per
sons in charge Of trains have to fear person.
ally from reckless misconductis is the possible
loss Of their place, and this is of but little
weight, as they Immediately seek and secure
employment on some other road But such
possible loss of place by the employe Is
frail security to the traveller against gross
misconduct Of those in charge of trains. OF
course damages may be recovered Of the COM
pahy ina proper case, but an ounce Of pre-
yention is to be preferred to pound of cure,
and hence 1 say there is great need in this
stats for legislation on this subject.
"EDwARD LEPPER, T.
m UI Coroner, Seneca County, Ohio.
"TIFTIN, Ohio, Feb. 21, 1887"
The Nav Trottinp Association.